Brauch

Brauch is a German term for a customary practice or ritual observed within a community. It denotes concrete acts that recur over time—seasonal observances, life‑cycle rites, or regular social ceremonies—and is transmitted culturally from generation to generation. In linguistic and ethnographic usage, the related term Brauchtum refers to the body of such customs, while Sitte denotes local manners and traditions.

The word derives from the verb brauchen, meaning to use or employ; historically, a Brauch was something that people use or perform regularly. In this sense, a Brauch is both a social convention and a performative act that helps structure daily life and shared identity.

Brauche are learned informally through family, neighbors, and communities. They serve to reinforce social cohesion, mark time—such as the agricultural or church calendar—and express regional or group identity. They may involve ceremonies, song, costumes, food, and ritualized rules of conduct that participants observe.

Customs vary widely between regions and communities. Examples commonly cited in German-speaking areas include harvest or harvest-related celebrations, Christmas and Advent customs, wedding and baptism rites, processions, and seasonal foods or dress. As societies modernize, some Brauche are preserved as living heritage, adapted to contemporary life, or gradually fade away.